


You Know What Your Problem Is?

by Aibohp



Series: We've Got Problems (We Get By) [3]
Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Demisexual Stan, Gen, Multi, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Male/Male Relationships, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 18:54:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13324383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aibohp/pseuds/Aibohp
Summary: Richie is accidentally a dick. Stan gets some cuddles.





	You Know What Your Problem Is?

**Author's Note:**

> Probably next to no one is going to read this because it isn't tagged with a popular ship but that's fine. I'm mostly just using Stan as a doll to work through my own shit!

“-- and dude the things he can do with his mouth,” Richie groaned, letting his head fall off the edge of Stan’s bed. He’d been going on non-stop about Bill, Eddie, and himself since he came in the room. 

They were supposed to be studying. Stan sighed, staring down at his math homework and watching the numbers swim. This was not studying. 

“He does this thing where he _just_ sucks on the tip and then he uses his tongue to--” 

“Beep beep, Richie,” Stan snapped shuddering slightly. “Much as I _love_ hearing you go on about how great Bill is at guzzling cum, we’re supposed to be fucking studying.” 

He didn’t mind listening to his friends talk about their relationships most of the time. Beverly was just all giggly and sappy about Ben. Sometimes she’d get a little mopy or sad because they weren’t officially together. No matter how often he pointed out to her that they _could be_ together, she’d just brush it off saying something self-deprecating. It always made Stan feel sad that Bev thought that way about herself. All any of them could do was love her until she figured out how to really love herself, though. It wasn’t like that was such a burden. 

Bill was quieter and sometimes talking about his relationship meant bitching about how Eddie and Richie were fighting about something. For the most part, though, he’d get a quiet little smile on his face and go on about how very loved they made him feel. Every now and then he’d go into a little detail about how it felt to be snuggled up in bed with the two of them. He seemed to have a pretty good idea of what was and was not the sort not to talk about with Stan, though. Stan hadn’t even told Bill about how he felt about sex and all that but he always seemed to know what not to start gushing over though. 

Occasionally he’d catch Beverly and Bill with their heads together, cheeks red as they spoke to each other. Maybe he talked to her about how much fun it was to suck dick. 

Talks with Ben were almost identical to talks with Bev. And then Eddie was a little more like Bill. Mike dated a girl here and there but they didn’t get talked about that often. 

Richie, though. Richie was just frustrating. If he would just stick to bitching about Eddie or cooing over Bill, then that would be fine. But no. He just had to start going on about all the nasty stuff those three had started getting up to. So far as Stan knew they hadn’t gone so far as to start banging each other’s brains out but apparently there was plenty other stuff to do. And Richie loved to talk about it in great detail. 

“Awe but I was just getting to the best part! And you know as well as I do this was just a ploy to get out of some hard manual labor,” Richie said, the blankets rustling as he rolled over on his belly.

“Maybe for you! I actually need to study! And if I have to hear about how the inside of Bill’s throat feels one more time I’m gonna puke,” Stan said, turning his head to glare at Richie. The bespectacled boy was just grinning cheekily at him. 

“Awe come on! Just pretend I’m talking about a girl,” Richie teased, like that was the problem. But then he didn’t know that it wasn’t. Would Richie even listen if he tired to explain? 

 

“Dude that’s not the problem,” Stan said with a sigh, finally giving up on his homework and spinning around in his swivel chair. “I’m just… I’m not into _that_.” 

His heart thundered in his ears as the words came out. It was easier than expected. Maybe it was because he’d told Beverly before. Still, the moment between blurting out his confession and Richie’s reaction was terrifying. Richie’s nose and crinkled up in confusion, lip curled. 

“What the fuck dude? You mean blowjobs? How are you not into blowjobs,” Richie asked incredulously. 

Stan’s heart sank a little. 

“I just.. I’m not.” Suddenly Stan felt a lot like Bill, choking on his words. “I mean… sex seems weird,” he fumbled, trying to explain himself. It was hard with the confused, disbelieving look on Richie’s face, though. 

“Dude you’re just being too picky. Like have you ever gotten laid? Just wait till you find some of that good pussy,” Richie said with a laugh, like he was joking, like all this was funny. 

His phone went off and he sat up so he could fish it out of his pocket and answer. Stan felt a little cold inside, like his heart had broken a little. Beverly had been so instantly accepting and supportive. Richie just seemed to think something was wrong with him. The fact that he hadn’t had sex before was apparently enough to say he didn’t know his own feelings. Stan could feel his emotions getting messy and while Richie was distracted, he took a moment to suck in a deep breath and try to cram them down and make the tears stop prickling at the back of his eyes. 

“Hey! The guys are doing a thing over at Mike’s tonight. They wanna know if we want to come over. We just have to bring some refreshments and shit since we didn’t help with the fence earlier.” Richie was still grinning. He probably didn’t even know what he’d done. 

“Okay,” Stan said, aiming for normal but thinking maybe his voice came out a little stiff. 

If it did Richie didn’t notice, already flying off the bed and tugging on his shoes by the door. Stan followed after, though at a much slower pace. Richie was already clomping down the stairs while Stan was grabbing his keys off a hook by his bedroom door and pulling on his shoes. Hopefully Beverly would be at the Hanlon’s because he wanted to talk to her. He needed assurance, once again, that he wasn’t broken for not being interested in sex. The way Richie had looked at him, like he just couldn’t make sense of him. Or like he was some kind of freak. For the first time he almost felt like an outsider among the Losers. 

“HURRY UP STAN,” Richie called up the stairs, and with a sigh, Stan followed.

#######

As soon as the car stopped moving at Mike’s Richie was out of the car, leaving Stan to deal with everything they’d gotten for himself. Which normally would have rubbed him the wrong way but he was feeling just a bit eager to get away from his four-eyed friend for a moment. Everyone was already milling around in the yard between Mike’s house and the barn. The ever changing stack of hay bales beside it was covered in blankets and there was a sheet tacked up to the side. So they were having movie night. Fun. Or at least it would be if Stan could put a stop to the negative cloud of thoughts hanging over his head.

Movie night was fun _but_ it meant that Bill, Eddie, and Richie were going to be obnoxiously snuggly. The three of them were already hanging all over each other. It looked like Richie and Eddie were both trying to drag Bill to the ground. Bev and Ben were going to be all cute and awkward. He’d be alone while Mike took pictures of everyone. Stuff like that didn’t usually bother him but after after his little conversation with Richie…. Well he’d rather be home sleeping than trying to act like nothing was bothering him while he hung out with his friends. 

Suddenly a thump on his window that made Stan jolt. There was Mike, grinning at him from the other side of the door. He seemed pretty pleased with himself. It was hard not to smile even a little as Stan opened the door. 

“You scared the shit out of me,” Stan complained, climbing out of the car. 

“I know! It was hilarious,” Mike said with a laugh, completely ruining Stan’s resolve not to smile. “You need some help?” He motioned to the back of the car. 

“Oh. Yeah, actually. Would have gotten Richie to help me out but you know how he is,” Stan said, nodding his head over to where he had Bill pulled down for a kiss. 

Mike snorted but didn’t say anything as he opened the back door and started grabbing bags of snacks. Once his hands were full Stan stepped in to grab what was left and nudged the door closed with his hip. They weren’t forced to carry anything too far, though. As soon as they got close enough everyone started diving down on them like seagulls at the dump, grabbing for their favorite foods. There was a bag with granola and an assortment of cheap candy for Bev and Ben, a giant bag of popcorn for Richie, Bill, and Eddie to share. It left them with Stan’s trail mix, Mike’s chips and a box of cokes. 

Everyone had piped up with a ‘thank you’ whenever they came up to grab something but in the end they had already split into their couply little groups and were migrating toward their makeshift movie theatre on the side of the barn. Stan let out a sigh that was part annoyed, and partly just sad. All five of them were spread out on the first couple levels of hay bales, close enough to talk to each other but still separated by the lines of who was pining over or in love with who. Eddie and Richie had Bill squished between them while not far away Beverly was snuggled up to Ben’s side. It was kinda gross how cute they all were.

“You okay,” Mike asked, nudging his shoulder into Stan’s. 

“Huh? Oh yeah. I’m fine,” Stan said, forcing a smile. Even in the dying light of evening He thought Mike’s expression was skeptical. 

“If you say so,” Mike finally said before offering him another smile. “Come on. Let’s get over there before they start without us. We’re watching Fern Gully.” 

Stan smiled, letting himself get lead toward the hay bales. They split off from each other when they got there, though. Mike quickly scaled the mountain of hay to check on their projector and get the movie started while Stan emptied the box of coke into a cooler nestled near the section of hay that Beverly and Ben had staked out. Everyone was so absorbed in each other that Stan didn’t even think anyone noticed him as he made his way near the top of the haystack and settled down behind everyone. Mike was already down from the top, snapping pictures of everyone. Jealous as he was of how everyone had someone, Stan found himself enjoying the moment alone. It let him just relax and be sad for a moment. 

He curled his knees up toward this chest and wrapped his arms around them, eyes staring vacantly at the side of the barn. Why did Richie have to be so _Richie_? It wasn’t as though he had been trying to hurt him, Stan knew. But he still had and he didn’t even realize it! And Beverly was too caught up in Ben at the moment to talk to. Sure she would have let Stan pull her away but he didn’t really want to. She seemed so happy. It mad Stan feel like he was suffering with some infectious disease that he didn’t want to spread to her. He sighed again. Why couldn’t he be fucking normal?

There was a flash of light to his right and Stan swiveled his head around in shock. Mike’s familiar laughter greeted him and he rolled his eyes. That was twice now the other boy had caught him by surprise.

“Hey, Mike,” Stan said flatly, earning a little chuckle from his friend. 

“What’s up, Buttercup,” Mike asked, reaching out to poke at Stan’s side. “And don’t tell me you’re fine this time.” 

Stan could feel his cheeks heat a little. ‘Buttercup’ wasn’t a nickname for him or anything. It was just a cutesy way to say hello and didn’t mean anything. And MIke was only worrying about him because he’d caught him acting off and that was what _good_ friends do. Stan could barely see him in the dark. Once the sun had started going down it had really dropped out of the sky, it seemed, because it was almost entirely dark out. Just the faintest glow was up over the trees. Still, He was mostly seeing MIke in the light bouncing back off the movie screen. It only left about half his face lit up because he was still facing Stan, quiet and patient as ever. 

“I told Richie I wasn’t interested in sex and he said I just needed to find some good pussy.” 

Why did the dark bring out the boldness in a person? Still, the third time coming out was even easier than the second, even if he was more scared. After all, the last time hadn’t really ended the way he wanted. 

“Oh,” Mike started before giving his head a tiny shake and leaning closer. “What?” 

Stan snorted quietly and let go of his legs so he could lean back and scrub his hands over his face. He didn’t want to see Mike while he tried to explain himself. 

“He was going on about Bill, I was getting uncomfortable. I tried to explain to Richie that I’m not all that interested in sex and he just…. He acted like I didn’t know what I was talking about and just needed to get laid.” His voice was quiet but annoyed, the heels of his hands digging into his eyes. “I mean I’m the one feeling all this stuff! I should know what the fuck I’m feeling right? I’ve never wanted to have sex with anyone! I can only even imagine doing something like that with someone I’m as close to as I am you guys!” Stan pressed his lips together in a thin line after that, biting down on the urge to admit he’d thought of kissing some of his friends. He dug his nails into his hairline and groaned quietly. “I just.. I feel like a freak.” 

“You’re not a freak,” Mike said kindly and Stan felt a warm, dry hand curl around his wrist and pull his hand away from his face. He still didn’t open his eyes, though, not even when Mike laced their fingers together. “And I mean I know Richie wasn’t trying to hurt you but that was still rude as fuck.” 

Stan let out a tiny huff of laughter and finally looked at Mike. He smiled a little when their eyes met and Stan found himself smiling back. Maybe it was because he was feeling just a bit less upset after getting the pent up feelings off his chest. Mike’s reaction didn’t hurt either. 

“I… I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” Stan muttered quietly, dropping his gaze to their connected hands. The way their fingers looked, locked together, made him think of piano keys. 

“I don’t think anything’s wrong with you, man. Richie’s just stupid,” Mike said with a grin, making Stan laugh quietly.

“Yeah he is, but he isn’t the reason I feel like something is wrong with me. It’s just like…” Stan paused, trying to find his words. “It’s just like everything around me?” He sighed, looking down at everyone else below them. Ben and Beverly were leaning into one another. So were Eddie, Richie, and Bill. Though a head that he thought was Richie’s was turned in toward what he thought was Bill’s neck. So they maybe weren’t just cuddling. “It isn’t like I don’t want a relationship with anyone but it seems like you have to end up having sex at some point. You know?” 

Mike hummed, scooting closer and moving his arm to drape around Stan’s shoulders. It was just a little awkward at first because he didn’t let go of the hand he’d kidnapped to do so. Stan sat stiffly for a moment before letting himself lean against Mike a little. It was nice and there wasn’t that nagging feeling that it meant more than it did. Besides, with all the time he spent wishing for that kind of affection, Stan couldn’t just turn it down. 

“I feel that,” Mike finally said, only after Stan had relaxed against his side. “It’s not like the climactic scenes between lovers in movies is ever them cuddling on the couch. And everything else makes it seem like guys are supposed to be tryna get laid all the time.” 

“Yeah,” Stan said, voice low and mopey. “At the same time snuggling and cuddling and just... well stuff like this seems like the kinda thing that only lovers are supposed to do.” 

“Nah,” MIke said, giving Stan a little squeeze. “I mean yeah it seems that way but it doesn’t have to be that way. Societal norms have never really applied to us Losers.” He could hear the grin in MIke’s voice. “Besides I don’t think humans are supposed to be so isolated. It’ll drive you nuts.” 

“Agreed,” Stan said with a chuckle. It wasn’t hard to recall nights when he’d spent tossing and turning while his skin prickled for the heat of someone else pressed up against him. 

“So if you ever find yourself in some desperate need of no-strings snuggling let me know,” Mike said, tiling his head until their skulls bonked gently together. “And if you want to punish Richie you should tell Bill and Eddie what he did. Or Bev.” 

Stan snickered at that and shrugged his shoulder, letting his head rest against Mike’s shoulder. It was a little amazing to him how much a simple touch seemed to sooth his rankled nerves. The idea of telling Bill and Eddie about himself seemed a little intimidating still, though. Then again, Richie would probably be telling them about what he’d said anyway. And it seemed like the more often he told someone the easier it got. 

“Thanks, Mike,” Stan said quietly, taking back his hand so he could fish his phone out of his pocket. Mike let him, leaning over his shoulder to watch as he typed a message into the group-chat. 

“Any time, buddy.”


End file.
